4 ways to help a friend through the loss of a pet

Losing a pet is one of the hardest things that some people will ever cope with. To most people, pets are family members, and losing one is just like losing one of your close family members. It can truly feel like losing a child to some. Having worked in the humane society world for years I know all about the joys, frustration, and pain that our animals bring us. Pets are there for you when others are not. That pet may have been their only true companion. The fact that these pets were always there for them may have made them more valuable to them than their human friends on a daily basis and in moments of crisis. The deep sense of grief experienced by some pet owners is beyond what many other people understand. The depth of the emotional pain we experience after any loss is directly related to the power of that relationship in our lives. It is difficult to imagine how painful the grief of the loss of this companion is to the griever if we have never had a similar attachment to an animal. If a close friend of yours (or a family member) has recently lost a pet, there are ways that you can help them get through this stressful and emotional time for them. Here are a few ways to help a friend through the loss of a pet:

Without loss there is no life, but it stings, doesn’t it?